Nonprofits & Social Services

DAVISON, Mich. — According to a 2011 study, developing a culture of learning based in acts of service, both individual and collective, contributes to the formation of a more cohesive and peaceful community. In many communities, youth have taken the initiative to start programs that focus on the education of junior youth, who are between the ages of 11 and 14, in order to better serve their communities and create bonds of friendship between program participants. According to a 2004 study from The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, programs that work to empower all youth rather than simply focusing on those deemed “at-risk” are more effective at preventing problem behavior, promoting social competence, building healthy relationships and fostering spirituality. One example of a program that engages in positive youth development is the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program (JYSEP).

In 2016, there were around 12,000 animals licensed in and around Lansing. During the same period, 7,381 animals were taken into the two biggest animal shelters in the Greater Lansing Area: 3,139 of the animals went to Ingham County Animal Shelter, and 4,242 of them went to the Capital Area Humane Society. Some of the animals were abandoned by their owners, who could not care for their pets anymore for different reasons, some of them were rescued from unsafe places, and some of them were stray and became an animal shelter’s property. “They are usually just being dropped off at the door like sometimes the leash is tied to the door knob or they’re roaming around,” said Kelsee Horrom, a former volunteer at the animal shelter. “If they’re older the dogs won’t get adopted as quickly as younger ones, sadly.

Eviction blindsides many people at the bottom of the income scale. Citizens in poverty – those people making equal to or less than $12,000 annually in a single-person family according to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation – are in a tough situation because they have no resource net besides their paychecks.

On the outside, it just looks like some small storage building. The plain red bricks and few windows don’t exactly shout out “Welcome!” to whomever passes by. Step in through the garage door, though, and you’ll find something that might surprise you – hundreds of bicycles, just waiting to be taken home. Frank Wheeler sits inside the shop of Lansing’s Kids Repair Program working on an old bike that was dropped off at the police station just a few days earlier. He’s been retired for a few years now, but that doesn’t stop him from coming in and volunteering whenever he’s got the chance.

Old Town Commercial Association interns are making their mark in Old Town. Helping with events, talking with sponsors and working on the newsletter are all just a few tasks they help with to grow the neighborhood.

By IAN WENDROW Capital News Service LANSING — Detroit once was home to the world’s largest municipally owned streetcar enterprise, an industry with a history stretching from the city’s early founding through the 1950s. Now a new book, “The Thirty-Year … Continue reading →

Environmental News from Great Lakes Echo

By MAX JOHNSTON
Capital News Service
LANSING — Many people consider carp to be a “trash fish,” but fly fishing for carp is popular in northern Michigan. This year though, guides have cancelled trips and lost thousands of dollars because they can’t find the fish.

By CARIN TUNNEY
Capital News Service
LANSING — Lake trout make noise in bed, according to new research by Great Lakes scientists. The species commonly growl, snap, quiver and thump while spawning, the study found.

In Case You Missed It

Summertime poses as the perfect opportunity for students to make and earn money for the up-and-coming school year but with more and more summer internships failing to offer compensation for their time students can struggle to make ends meet. “When I first got my internship I was so excited,” said Michigan State University pre-med student Ali Beydoun, “then found out it was unpaid and I got a little worried.